How to select the right hosting server OS?

Just like your desktop need an OS for one to be able to access it, a site too requires to be hosted on a web server so you it can be visited by web visitor. There are many web servers and server platforms offering these services on the cyber space today. But each has got its advantages and drawbacks and so it is valuable of you to choose cleverly so that you make the best our the web server or the operation system you chose.

Research done by Netcraft has found out that Unix and Linux running Apache internet web site hosting server and Window NT/2000 running Internet Information Server are the most popular platforms and web servers today. The former is up by 60.17% and the later by 30.78%. Apart from these, there are many other web servers like SunONE, Weblogics, Zues etc. But we can say from the amount of popularity of Apache web server and Microsoft’s Windows NT/2000 is that they are compatible with most computers and machines.

When we talk of a platform, it’s more like an operation system in computers. Web hosting servers need these operating systems to enable them to run well and perform various tasks. But when talking of web site hosting servers, the operating system is known as platform. The most common platform is the UNIX, which is preferred by most web hosts who use FreeBSD, Linus, OpenBSD and NetBSD. Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003 is another platform that is doing well in terms of market share and popularity as a web server platform.

One part you should consider before judging which platform for turn to, is the requirements of your web. If you are making a simple website that will only need HTML to make and run, then you don’t have to be too special about the platform to pick. But if you want to run dynamic content which might need to use functionalities like CGI scripts, PHP, JSP, SSI or ASP, then you are advised to opt UNIX platform web hosting.